Recently, the electronic filing system has drawn attention in the market, which entails the increase of the needs for the image reading apparatus as an input device. The image reading apparatus is demanded to read documents at a highest possible speed in order to improve work efficiency. In general, the image reading apparatus employs the following process: documents stacked on a feeding table is sent out sheet by sheet, and the data thereof is read out by a fixed reader during high speed transmission. Machines such as KX-SS55N and KX-SS55EXN made by Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. are the typical models employing the above process.
Conventional image reading apparatuses, however, were designed to handle independent documents supplied sequentially, and the conventional image reading apparatus thus cannot deal with continuous documents that are used in offices as output slips.
Information quantity depends on respective sheets of documents. In the case of handling the independent documents, a following sheet of the independent documents must be halted until a preceding sheet completes a read-out process and an image process. In the case of handling the continuous documents, sheets are continuously sent out and the conventional apparatus cannot deal with them because the sheets must be supplied at a speed corresponding to the process time of the maximum information quantity per sheet.
Recently the electronic filing systems prevail in the market, and the image reading apparatuses are used under various environments. This market trend demands an image reading apparatus to handle various types of documents, in particular, continuous documents.